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Archives for May 2018

Early Returns On Minor League Signings: Relievers

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Over the past couple of days, Jeff Todd has highlighted some of the early returns on minor league signings from the offseason and Spring Training, as pertains to starting pitchers and position players. It’s obviously early to glean too much from such investments, and that’s all the more true when it comes to relief pitchers, most of whom have worked fewer than 15 innings thus far in the season. That said, there are still several minor pickups who have played a relatively sizable role through the season’s first five weeks.

A look at some of the most oft-used arms (10+ innings pitched)…

  • Fernando Salas & Jorge De La Rosa, Diamondbacks: Salas (17 1/3 innings) and De La Rosa (10 1/3 innings) have combined to yield just four runs through their 27 2/3 frames this season. Neither is missing many bats, and De La Rosa has issued as many walks as strikeouts (six), but it’s hard to argue with the bottom-line results they’ve delivered to date. Salas leads all minor league signees in terms of relief innings thrown thus far in the 2018 season.
  • Hector Santiago, White Sox: Santiago tossed 16 innings of 3.38 ERA ball out of the Chicago ’pen before shifting into a starting role and logging 4 2/3 frames in his first outing. In all, he has a 3.48 ERA in 20 2/3 innings of work with 20 strikeouts, though he’s also issued 10 walks and hit two batters. The control issues could come back to haunt the Sox, but he’s been a useful depth add so far in 2018.
  • Tyler Clippard & John Axford, Blue Jays: Clippard (15 1/3 innings) and Axford (14 innings) have combined for 29 1/3 frames of sub-2.00 ERA ball, with each yielding just three runs on the season. Clippard has issued eight walks and has seen his extreme fly-ball tendencies become even more pronounced, which has caused fielding-independent metrics to forecast some regression. Axford boasts a 14-to-4 K/BB ratio and 52.6 percent ground-ball rate.
  • Kevin Jepsen, Rangers: Jepsen has soaked up 14 innings for the Rangers, albeit with a pedestrian 4.50 ERA and as many walks (seven) as strikeouts. Texas has had plenty of injuries both in the rotation and the bullpen, so his spot seems safe for now.
  • Dylan Floro, Reds: Through 11 2/3 innings, Floro has been dominant in the Cincinnati bullpen. He’s logged an impressive 11-to-2 K/BB ratio (one of those walks was intentional) and run up a sensational 66.7 percent ground-ball rate when allowing hitters to put the ball in play. Floro has quadrupled the frequency of his changeup, jumping from a 4.5 percent usage rate to more than 18 percent in 2018 (largely at the expense of his fastball), and the early results are obviously very promising.
  • Drew Hutchison, Phillies: Hutchison has given the Phils 11 1/3 innings and a 3.18 ERA so far, with an 11-to-6 K/BB ratio and a grounder rate just north of 53 percent. The control could be better, but he’s been a solid enough pickup that can be counted upon for multiple innings of relief work. He also provides the club with some rotation depth after starting in Spring Training, though the longer he works in shorter relief stints the less likely he is to make any spot starts.
  • Bruce Rondon, White Sox: Rondon has had a pair of nightmarish outings but is unscored upon in seven of nine relief appearances this year. He’s showing the velocity that tantalized the Tigers for so long (96.9 mph average fastball velocity) and an ability to miss bats (14 strikeouts, 16.3 percent swinging-strike rate), but control remains an issue (six walks, one hit batter, two wild pitches). His 5.06 ERA in 10 2/3 innings isn’t impressive, but he figures to get a longer look.
  • Matt Belisle, Indians: The veteran Belisle finished out the 2017 on a strong run with the Twins but didn’t carry that over to his new gig with the Indians. In 10 2/3 innings, he allowed six runs before being designated for assignment yesterday. Belisle walked just one batter in his short time with Cleveland, though he also hit a pair of batters and whiffed just four hitters while averaging 89.8 mph on his fastball.
  • Blaine Boyer, Royals: The 36-year-old had a nice run with four teams from 2014-17 after a two-year MLB hiatus, but he’s had a dismal start to his Royals tenure. In 10 innings, Boyer has surrendered 19 runs (15 earned) on 17 hits and eight walks with three strikeouts. He’s given up four homers as well.

Certainly, there are other names that will become factors in due time. Jonny Venters’ call to the Majors from the Rays after five years lost to multiple arm surgeries is a feel-good story for any baseball fan. Carlos Torres, Brooks Pounders, Matt Magill and Casey Lawrence are among the minor league signees who’ve recently emerged at the big league level, while recognizable veterans like Josh Edgin (Orioles), Xavier Cedeno (White Sox), Jeanmar Gomez (White Sox), Edward Mujica (Cardinals), Oliver Perez (Yankees) and Sean Burnett (Marlins) have thrown rather well in Triple-A to this point in the young season.

DeGrom Cleared Of Ligament Damage, Aims To Pitch Monday

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May 3: Manager Mickey Callaway announced this morning that the MRI revealed no ligament damage in deGrom’s elbow, and he’ll attempt to make his next scheduled start on Monday (Periscope link).

May 2, 8:49pm: Manager Mickey Callaway told reporters after the game that deGrom incurred the injury while swinging in his third-inning at-bat (Twitter link via Tim Britton of The Athletic). He’s undergoing an MRI to further assess the damage.

7:48pm: Mets ace Jacob deGrom left Wednesday night’s start after four innings due to injury, which the Mets’ broadcast later revealed to be a hyperextended right elbow (via Kristie Ackert of the New York Daily News). Certainly, there’ll be additional testing performed to determine the extent of the injury and the length of any potential absence for deGrom, though the initial diagnosis of any elbow-related issue isn’t especially encouraging for the Mets.

With tonight’s four shutout innings, deGrom had dropped his ERA to a sensational 1.87 to go along with a 54-to-11 K/BB ratio in 43 1/3 innings of work to open the season. He hasn’t been scored on since an April 16 start against the Nationals and had rattled off a streak of 18 1/3 scoreless frames prior to tonight’s injury.

Suffice it to say, an absence of any length would be a major hit to the Mets, who opened the season in dominant fashion but have seen their grip on the NL East division lead fade to just a half-game entering play Wednesday. Should deGrom require a trip to the disabled list, which seems likely but won’t be formally announced until post-game or even tomorrow morning, the Mets would have Noah Syndergaard, Zack Wheeler, Jason Vargas and Steven Matz as healthy rotation pieces.

Matt Harvey was recently moved to the ’pen and could conceivably be viewed as an option to return to the rotation, though the Mets may want to see him continue to work in shorter stints and may not want to quickly change course on such a high-profile role change for the righty. Neither Seth Lugo nor Robert Gsellman is stretched out at present, having opened the season in the bullpen, though both obviously have plenty of experience starting at the MLB level. Right-handers Chris Flexen and Corey Oswalt are the team’s top two starting options on the 40-man roster in Triple-A.

Blue Jays Activate Josh Donaldson

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The Blue Jays have activated Josh Donaldson from the 10-day disabled list and opened a roster spot by placing Justin Smoak on the paternity list, per Sportsnet’s Shi Davidi (Twitter link).

Donaldson, 32, hit the DL back on April 10 due to a shoulder issue that was impacting his ability to throw across the diamond. He played third base in a pair of minor league rehab games, however, and obviously showed well enough there that the Toronto organization felt comfortable bringing the 2015 AL MVP back to the big league roster for what figures to be regular work at his customary position.

Donaldson opened the season with a .239/.352/.457 slash and three homers through 55 plate appearances, and early reports indicated that the shoulder wasn’t really hampering his ability to swing the bat. He’ll look to improve upon that early pace as he aims to match the outrageous .302/.410/.698 line that he posted over his final 227 plate appearances last season, when he finished out the year as one of the hottest hitters in the game.

The manner in which Donaldson acquits himself both at the hot corner and at the plate will be critical, as he’s on the cusp of reaching free agency for the first time. If Donaldson can produce at anywhere near the torrid .285/.387/.559 clip he posted through his first three seasons in Toronto and handle throwing from third to first without issue, then April’s dead arm will likely be viewed as a mere blip on the radar.

A healthy Donaldson would have an easy case for a nine-figure deal even though he’ll play the 2019 season at age 33. If the shoulder troubles prove to be an ongoing issue throughout the ’18 season, however, there’s obvious potential for them to severely impact his earning power on the open market. Donaldson ranked fourth on the first edition of MLBTR’s monthly Free Agent Power Rankings, trailing only Bryce Harper, Manny Machado and Clayton Kershaw.

Marlins Release Johnny Giavotella

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The Marlins have released second baseman Johnny Giavotella from their Triple-A club, the infielder himself revealed yesterday (Twitter link). The 30-year-old Giavotella will now explore opportunities in free agency as he looks to latch on with another organization.

Giavotella opened the 2018 season on the minor league disabled list with a hip issue — he had arthroscopic surgery on his right hip last August — but was activated mid-April and appeared in 10 games before being cut loose. He hit .214/.389/.250 with a stolen base in that brief sample of work with the Marlins’ New Orleans affiliate. Miami activated shortstop JT Riddle from the 10-day DL yesterday and optioned him to Triple-A, adding an important name to the mix for middle infield playing time in New Orleans and likely cutting into some of Giavotella’s opportunity.

Giavotella received just 10 big league plate appearances in 2017, all coming with the Orioles, but he enjoyed a highly productive season with Baltimore’s Triple-A affiliate, hitting .306/.368/.441 with five homers, 22 doubles, four triples and four steals in 379 plate appearances. He was also a regular in the Angels’ big league lineup not long ago, totaling 869 PAs and hitting a combined .267/.305/.375 with the Halos from 2015-16.

In all, while Giavotella has struggled to get on base in the Majors (career .294 OBP in 1344 PAs), he’s a lifetime .312/.381/.446 hitter in parts of seven Triple-A campaigns — a track record that should provide him ample opportunity to latch on with a club in need of some depth second base.

MLB Daily Roster Roundup: Anderson, Miley, Montgomery, Romero

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ROSTER MOVES BY TEAM
(May 2nd)

NATIONAL LEAGUE

  • MIAMI MARLINS | Depth Chart
    • Activated from 10-Day DL: SS JT Riddle
      • Riddle was optioned to Triple-A

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AMERICAN LEAGUE

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FUTURE EXPECTED MOVES

Injury Notes: Donaldson, Tropeano, Musgrove, Twins

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The Blue Jays announced tonight that third baseman Josh Donaldson will rejoin the club Thursday and is likely to be activated from the disabled list. A shoulder issue has kept the former AL MVP out of action since April 10, though he’s played in multiple minor league rehab games and appears to be back on track after experiencing some troubles throwing across the diamond earlier this season. The Jays have stayed afloat just fine in the absence of their best player, as they’re currently sporting a 17-13 record and right in the middle of the AL Wild Card mix a month into the season. Donaldson will have plenty riding on a healthy and productive return, as he’s set to hit free agency for the first time following the 2018 campaign.

Some other health-related notes from around the league…

  • Already being hit hard by the injury bug, the Angels took another punch on Wednesday, announcing that righty Nick Tropeano is headed to the 10-day DL with a shoulder issue. The good news for the Halos is that the injury appears minor, as Tropeano told reporters he’ll “100 percent” be ready to return after the 10-day minimum (Twitter link via Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register). As Tropeano explains, he’s not even planning to stop throwing and already played catch earlier today. The Angels, it seems, are merely acting with precaution after the righty felt some something slightly off in his shoulder.
  • Pirates righty Joe Musgrove threw 36 pitches in a rehab outing, writes Oliver Macklin of MLB.com, 29 of which went for strikes. Manager Clint Hurdle added that Musgrove threw his cutter, slider and changeup in the outing and demonstrated “firm” velocity on his fastball. Perhaps more notable is the fact that Hurdle confirmed that Musgrove will indeed be rejoining the Pirates’ rotation when he returns from the disabled list. That could be bad news for rookie Nick Kingham, who turned in one of the best debuts in recent MLB history when he flirted with a perfect game through more than six innings this past Sunday. Kingham is slated to start Friday for the Buccos, though Hurdle said in announcing that earlier this week that there was nothing guaranteed beyond that point. Speculatively speaking, right-hander Chad Kuhl has also struggled in 2018 (5.01 ERA, seven homers in 32 1/3 innings), so perhaps he could be bumped if Kingham impresses in his second big league start.
  • Byron Buxton has yet to progress to running since being diagnosed with a hairline fracture in his toe, writes MLB.com’s Rhett Bollinger. Buxton sustained the injury when he fouled a ball into his foot during a rehab game in Fort Myers as he was working his way back from a bout with ongoing migraine headaches. He’ll rejoin the club on Friday but won’t necessarily be activated from the DL, Bollinger notes, as the team is debating whether he needs another rehab stint now that he’s been off for several weeks due to the foot injury. Bollinger adds that righty Trevor May, recovering from 2017 Tommy John surgery, tossed three innings and 46 pitches in an extended Spring Training game as he pushes his way toward readiness for a rehab assignment with the team’s Triple-A club.

Dodgers Notes: Ryu, Turner, Seager, Machado

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Dodgers lefty Hyun-Jin Ryu exited tonight’s start with a groin strain after throwing a 64mph pitch that was the slowest pitch he’s ever thrown in the Majors (h/t: J.P. Hoornstra of the Southern California News Group, on Twitter). The Dodgers announced a left groin strain for Ryu, and manager Dave Roberts didn’t sound optimistic about the injury postgame, calling it a “pretty good strain” and adding that Ryu is headed for an MRI (Twitter link via Pedro Moura of The Athletic). A lengthy absence for Ryu would be a major blow for the Dodgers, who’ve no doubt relished watching the southpaw bounce back to peak form with a dominant 2.12 ERA, 10.9 K/9, 3.0 BB/9, 0.9 HR/9 and 56.7 percent ground-ball rate in 29 2/3 innings thus far in 2018.

The Dodgers have been hammered by injuries early this season, with Corey Seager done for the season due to Tommy John surgery and Justin Turner still yet to suit up after suffering a broken wrist in Spring Training. The Dodgers don’t sound especially optimistic on Turner at the moment, either, as Andy McCullough of the L.A. Times tweets that skipper Dave Roberts simply said tonight that he has “no idea” when Turner will be cleared to head out on a minor league rehab assignment.

A bit more out of Los Angeles…

  • Seager, Roberts and GM Farhan Zaidi spoke with reporters at Chase Field following the announcement of Seager’s devastating injury (link via McCullough). While there was immediate speculation about the possibility of the Dodgers seeking out a trade, Zaidi suggested that for the time being, the Dodgers will look to in-house options, with Chris Taylor assuming responsibilities at shortstop. (Few teams, after all, are willing to part with a difference-making infielder at this point on the calendar.) Seager told the media that he felt his elbow give out over the weekend when making a relay throw on Sunday, explaining the feeling as a sudden bout of numbness in his elbow. The 23-year-old star dealt with bone chips and inflammation in the elbow last summer, according to McCullough, though extensive testing led medical experts to recommend against surgery at season’s end. It’s not clear how much, if any, ligament damage existed in Seager’s elbow following the 2017 season, of course, and undergoing a major surgery (especially Tommy John surgery) at that point still could very well have wiped him out for most, if not all of the 2018 season.
  • In the wake of the Seager injury, Bill Shaikin of the L.A. Times spoke to Manny Machado about the widespread speculation of the Dodgers potentially pursuing him on the trade market. Machado said he’s not had anyone reach out to him about the possibility, and Shaikin writes that the superstar infielder didn’t sound overly amenable to granting a potential trade partner a window to negotiate an extension. “Everyone has waited for the time to become a free agent,” said Machado. “You want to go out there and explore your options.” The 25-year-old did leave the door open a bit, adding that there’s “a price for everything” before stating that he hopes to remain with the Orioles at least through the 2018 season. Of course, as Machado also acknowledged, his future is largely out of his hands; he has no say over whether he’s traded or remains an Oriole. Per Shaikin, the O’s have no plans to accelerate their timeline for a potential Machado deal now that the Dodgers have a glaring need. Certainly, it’s possible that other clubs will join the pursuit later this year, thus driving up the price. And while the O’s had a dreadful start to the season, the organization undoubtedly is still holding out faint hope for a rebound in May and early June before conceding that the season is lost.

D-backs, Maricopa County Reportedly Reach Agreement Regarding Stadium Lease

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The Diamondbacks and Maricopa County have reached a preliminary agreement allowing the team to immediately begin searching for construction sites on a new stadium, reports Rebekah L. Sanders of the Arizona Republic. The agreement comes under the condition that the D-backs drop a preexisting $187MM lawsuit against the county that was brought forth in early 2017 after club ownership alleged that the County had neglected to abide by contractually agreed upon maintenance and repair obligations.

Per Sanders, the new agreement would allow the D-backs to leave Chase Field in 2022, five years before the end of the initial 30-year lease, if the proposed construction site is in Maricopa County. Leaving Arizona of their own accord would require the organization to pay $5-25MM worth of penalty fees, though the agreement allows the D-backs to leave the state free of penalty if relocation is mandated by Major League Baseball. County chairman Steve Chucri tells Sanders that the County would likely bring forth a new lawsuit against MLB in that scenario, though he also emphasizes that such a scenario is “incredibly unlikely.”

You’ll want to read Sanders’ report in full for comprehensive details of the new arrangement, though generally speaking the preliminary deal absolves the County from its obligations to pay for repairs and allows the municipality to retain ownership of the land in downtown Phoenix. In exchange, the D-backs can spend their own resources on maintenance and seek reimbursement for a portion of their investment while simultaneously exploring new construction sites. The team would also inherit the ability to book entertainment events at Chase Field, with revenue being allocated to repairs.

At the time the initial suit was brought forth, D-backs managing partner Ken Kendrick called the situation “extremely unfortunate” and alleged that the County had “forced” the club to take legal action with its failure to meet contractual obligations. County official Clint Hickman wholly dismissed the notion and called the Diamondbacks’ allegations “outrageous,” citing millions of dollars of offseason investment in structural reinforcement and accusing D-backs ownership of “just [wanting] a new stadium now.”

Kendrick struck a different tone in a statement issued to the Republic, calling the agreement the “best opportunity” for the club “to remain in Arizona for the long term” — a goal he dubbed the team’s “primary focus.” Unsurprisingly, local government officials offered mixed reviews to Sanders, with some expressing trepidation over the manner in which the agreement was “fast-tracked” and others striking a more optimistic tone about keeping the D-backs in Maricopa County well beyond the end of their previous agreement, in 2027.

Whether the agreement leads to the selection of a site and, ultimately, the construction of a new facility for the D-backs remains to be seen, though securing the rights to a new facility would be the latest boon for an organization that is increasingly poised to bolster its payroll due to additional revenue streams. The Diamondbacks are in their third year of a reported $1.5 billion television contract and have upped their spending accordingly, heading into the 2018 season with a franchise-record $131MM payroll that shattered the previous high-water mark by more than $19MM. In fact, prior to the 2018 season, the Diamondbacks had only twice had an Opening Day payroll in excess of $100MM.

The potential advent of massive revenue boosts for the Diamondbacks will become ever important as the club determines how to proceed with face of the franchise Paul Goldschmidt, who’ll be eligible for free agency following the completion of the 2019 season.

Early Returns On Minor-League Signings: Starting Pitchers

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We checked in yesterday on the position players that have carved out major roles despite signing minor-league deals over the winter. Today, we’ll turn to the hurlers, where it’s generally more difficult — but hardly impossible — to find serviceable assets in the rotation than in the bullpen.

These pitchers have to this point filled rotation slots with their organizations despite inking non-roster deals entering the season (presented by order of innings pitched):

  • Tyson Ross, Padres: Thus far, Ross has been a jackpot signing for the Pads. He won’t be cheap if he keeps performing, as his deal includes a base salary of $1.75MM with another $4.25MM in potential incentives, but that’s still plenty reasonable given what Ross has shown thus far. The 31-year-old has rediscovered much of his pre-injury ability to miss bats and currently owns a 3.28 ERA with 10.1 K/9, 3.3 BB/9, and a 47.3% groundball rate through 35 2/3 innings. Oh, and he very nearly threw a no-hitter.
  • Bartolo Colon, Rangers: The ageless wonder was just named the Rangers’ player of the month, if you’re looking for a concise explanation of how things are going for both player and team. He’s allowing less than a walk per nine while carrying a .225 BABIP-against. That’s not really sustainable, but while Statcast suggests some good fortune, it also indicates that Colon is legitimately drawing poor contact (.251 wOBA vs. .326 xwOB).
  • Derek Holland, Giants: Though he’s coughing up 5.76 earned runs per nine and has only averaged five innings in his five outings, Holland is filling an important need for the Giants and has probably thrown better than the results. He owns a 25:11 K/BB ratio, after all, and fielding-independent pitching metrics value him as a more serviceable hurler thus far (4.57 FIP, 4.61 xFIP, 4.33 SIERA). Holland can earn up to $4MM if he reaches all his incentives.
  • Jeremy Hellickson, Nationals: After signing late and getting up to speed, Hellickson has stepped into the Nats rotation and been a useful fifth starter. He’s not getting many strikeouts, and his FIP numbers look more like Holland’s, but he has worked to a 4.11 ERA over 15 1/3 innings. Unless injury or a trade acquisition intervened, Hellickson will have a chance to maintain his role. He’s earning $2MM with another $4MM possible via incentive pay.
  • Anibal Sanchez, Braves: Sanchez spent camp with the Twins after agreeing to a non-guaranteed MLB deal. He collected the portion that was guaranteed when he was released late in camp and shortly thereafter joined the Braves on a minors arrangement. While he’s currently working back from the DL, and will need to hold off impressive youngster Mike Soroka and others, Sanchez has been rather impressive in Atlanta. He has allowed just two earned runs in 14 innings while recording 14 strikeouts and six walks, with a swinging-strike rate (11.2%) that sits near his career peak.

A few other minor-league signees have taken starts, such as Miguel Gonzalez, but no others have produced useful results over a relatively sizable number of innings. That could still change, of course. Wade Miley is up for the Brewers, while Brett Anderson is slated to take the hill for Oakland tonight. A few other hurlers — Kris Medlen is a candidate to step up for the D-backs next week — could press for rotation opportunities before long.

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